


identities

by narcissacronin



Category: Renegades - Marissa Meyer
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-22
Updated: 2019-04-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:47:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22022035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/narcissacronin/pseuds/narcissacronin
Summary: nova and adrian decide to turn their secret identities in
Relationships: Nova Artino | Nightmare/Adrian Everhart | Sketch
Kudos: 14





	identities

Nova ran down the stairs, her bag—full of weapons and her disguise—thrown over her shoulder. The Anarchists were still out and they wouldn’t be back until later, but she didn’t want to waste any time. She needed to get as far away from them as possible.

In recent weeks, she had begun to notice little things about the way the Anarchists acted around her. That they would act nicer when they wanted something or they would show her praise only when she did something they wanted. Eventually, she came to the conclusion that they had been manipulating and using her all these years. With this revelation and the guilt of being Nightmare, she decided that she needed to turn herself in to the Renegades as soon as possible.

She slipped out the back door and ran in the opposite direction of the rowhouse, only stopping once she was a few streets away. It was then that she realized she didn’t have anywhere to go. There was no way she could go back to the rowhouse, so her only option was Adrian’s house. She sent him a short message asking if she could stay the night at his house. He replied less than a minute later, saying she could come over. Her nerves eased a bit and she rushed over to his house, running practically the whole way there.

The only time she stopped was when she reached his front door, waiting to catch her breath before knocking. Adrian opened the door, smile faltering when he saw her expression.

“Is something wrong?” he asked as he invited her inside.

She mouthed the word  _ nightmare _ , and he nodded in understanding. He motioned for her to follow him, then led her down the narrow staircase to his room. It wasn’t until the door closed that she breathed a sigh of relief and gently set her bag down on his couch before collapsing on the end of his bed.

“Nova,” he said, sitting down beside her, “what happened?”

“I ran away from the Anarchists, I don’t want to be one of them anymore. The guilt of being Nightmare is getting to me, I can’t go on like this much longer.” He sympathized with her, saying he felt the same about being the Sentinel.

A little over a month ago, they had revealed their secret identities to each other. Rather than work against each other or rat the other out, they started working together—as Nightmare and the Sentinel—baffling the Renegades. Nova and Adrian had taken it too far and were now walking on eggshells to avoid being revealed. The Council had started, for lack of better words, a witch hunt against the two, saying they were too dangerous and a threat to the city. Now, as they sat on his bed forming a plan to turn themselves in, both agreeing that it’d be the smartest course of action. But that didn’t make them any less nervous about it—so many things could go wrong.

The plan was for them to show up to headquarters as normal. Nova was bringing her duffel bag—full of weapons she had used as Nightmare and her disguise—with the intent of handing it over to the Council. While it pained her to hand over so many of the weapons that she had put so much effort into, they were a part of Nightmare and she didn't want that part of her anymore. They were going to go straight to the Council to confess their secret identities. Everything after that was for the Council to decide.

Nova reached for Adrian's hand, gripping it tightly. She scooted closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder. “Are you sure this is a good idea?” she asked, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.

“It’s the best we’ve got,” he said, offering her a forced smile.

“But I’m not sure it’s the best idea to just spring it on them. My relationship with the Council is precarious enough. They barely know me. The  _ real _ me, at least. Nova Artino. Not Nova McLain, not Insomnia. And definitely not Nightmare. Plus, I don’t think the fact that Ace Anarchy is my uncle will help.”

Adrian pulled away and turned to face her, placing his hands on her shoulders. “It’ll be fine. I promise.” He smiled again, this time more genuine.  
“You don’t know that, Adrian.” She ducked her head, tears forming in her eyes. 

He sighed. “You’re right, I don’t. But I can hope. And remember, you can back out if you want to. If you’re not ready to turn yourself in, then we don’t have to do it today.” He leaned forward and kissed her forehead, then he pulled away and cupped her face. “You’re a good person, Nova. We only need to show them that.”

“I’m not backing out now. And besides, it’s more complicated than that. I’m an ex-Anarchist—well, kind of—and I’m the niece of the most hatred prodigy in the world. Not exactly the best circumstances.”

“Please, just put a little more faith in our plan. I’ll do everything I can to make it work.”

Her only response was to slump against him, burying her face in his chest. His arms wrapped around her, holding her close. For someone who didn’t sleep, she was exhausted.

“Everything will be okay,” he murmured, his words slightly muffled by her hair. Already, she could feel herself drifting off in his arms despite the stress she felt for what they were about to do.


End file.
